California's Drought Became Dire In May — Here's What To Expect

LOS ANGELES, CA — Families flocking to their favorite lakes and watering holes for the Memorial Day weekend are finding bone-dry marinas and alarmingly low water levels — stark signs of just how severe the drought gripping California is becoming.

California entered the month of May officially in a drought and by the end of the month, more than a quarter of the state was categorized as having exceptional drought conditions, the most dire category. Depleted reservoirs up and down the state mean water use restrictions and brutal fire season are in California’s near-future, experts warn.

The effects of such extreme drought will be dramatic: unplanted fields, orchards removed, pine beetle infestation, high forest mortality, drying wetlands, wildlife death and increased algae blooms, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System.

Blame the dry winter and the warm spring. The warmer-than-usual spring quickly dried up the Sierra Nevada snowpack, accelerating drought conditions in May. The snowpack, which usually provides 65 percent of California’s water supply by slowly melting throughout the summer, is virtually gone due hot weather, according to the National Weather Service.

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a drought emergency for 41 counties, and communities in Northern California have begun restricting water usage.

“It’s drier than the very deep drought that just ended,” Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources, said at a State Water Resources Control Board meeting.

Water board officials across the state are warning residents not to wait for water use restrictions to start conserving water.

"There is no water to waste, and everyone in our community has a part in saving water during this drought. If you have a lawn, let it go brown or remove it," Sonoma Water Board of Directors Chair Lynda Hopkins said in a written statement. "If you have a leak, fix it. Reduce your showers by two minutes, or better yet, in this remote work environment, who can smell you on a Zoom call? Drastic times call for drastic measures and we all need to contribute to beat this drought.”

It was a meeting in which farmers from across the state implored authorities not to further reduce allotments of water as the hot summer months wear on. The allotments are forcing them to leave their crops fallow, and ranchers have legitimate concerns about being able to provide enough water to their herds come August.

The rainy season that just ended was the third driest on record and it comes on the heels of another dry year.

According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, portions of the state recorded soil moisture levels below the first percentile, and groundwater levels have fallen so low near the Sacramento and San Joaquin River deltas that saltwater intrusion is a real risk, prompting plans for a $30 million rock barrier to protect the freshwater.

State officials ordered communities and vineyards along the Russian River to restrict water use, a rarely used order, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The move by the State Water Resources Control Board is designed to keep Lake Mendocino — a vital source of drinking water — from running dry, CBS reported.

“Unless we immediately reduce diversions, there is a real risk of Lake Mendocino emptying by the end of this year,” Erik Ekdahl, deputy director of the Water Board’s Division of Water Rights told CBS. “We need to implement the water rights system to protect supplies in case of another dry winter, which could transform the Russian River into a series of disconnected pools and restrict the availability of drinking water in the area.”

The Sacramento Bee reported that farmers are refraining from planting their fields due to the low water allotments, and residents in the Sacramento area have been asked to reduce water usage by 10 percent.

The dry winter and spring has most of the Bay Area in the exceptional drought category with San Francisco, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties in the slightly less dire extreme drought category, according to the U.S Drought Monitor. To the South Inyo, Kern and Tulare counties are experiencing exceptional drought conditions while the Inland Empire and Los Angeles and Ventura Counties are in an extreme drought. Orange County is in severe drought while San Diego County’s drought is listed as moderate. As the dry summer months wear on, much of the state is likely to slip into the exceptional drought categories, and the wildfire danger will be explosive, authorities warn.

Water board officials are advising residents to conserve water and make sure there is defensive space around their homes in the event of a brush fire.

The Environmental Protection Agency offers the following tips for conserving water:

For Every Room in the House With Plumbing

• Repair leaky faucets, indoors and out.
• Consider replacing old equipment (such as toilets, dishwashers and laundry machines).

In the Kitchen

• When cooking, peel and clean vegetables in a large bowl of water instead of under running water.
• Fill your sink or basin when washing and rinsing dishes.
• Only run the dishwasher when it's full.
• When buying a dishwasher, select one with a "light-wash" option.
• Only use the garbage disposal when necessary (composting is a great alternative).
• Install faucet aerators.

In the Bathroom

• Take short showers instead of baths.
• Turn off the water to brush teeth, shave and soap up in the shower. Fill the sink to shave.
• Repair leaky toilets. Add 12 drops of food coloring into the tank, and if color appears in the bowl one hour later, your toilet is leaking.
• Install a toilet dam, faucet aerators and low-flow showerheads.

Laundry

• Run full loads of laundry.
• When purchasing a new washing machine, buy a water-saving model that can be adjusted to the load size.

Outdoors

• Maximize the use of natural vegetation and establish smaller lawns. For portions of your lot where a lawn and landscaping are desired, ask your local nursery for tips about plants and grasses with low water demand (such as creeping fescue). Consider planting more trees, shrubs, ground covers, and less grass. Shrubs and ground covers provide greenery for much of the year and usually demand less water. Use native plants in flower beds.
• When mowing your lawn, set the mower blades to 2-3 inches high. Longer grass shades the soil improving moisture retention has more leaf surface to take in sunlight, allowing it to grow thicker and develop a deeper root system. This helps grass survive drought, tolerate insect damage and fend off disease.
• Only water the lawn when necessary. If you water your lawn and garden, only do it once a week, if rainfall isn't sufficient. Avoid watering on windy and hot days. Water the lawn and garden in the morning or late in the evening to maximize the amount of water that reaches the plant roots (otherwise most of the water will evaporate). Use soaker hoses to water gardens and flower beds. If sprinklers are used, take care to be sure they don't water walkways and buildings. When you water, put down no more than 1 inch (set out a empty cans to determine how long it takes to water 1 inch) each week. This watering pattern will encourage more healthy, deep grassroots. Overwatering is wasteful, encourages fungal growth and disease, and results in the growth of shallow, compacted root systems that are more susceptible to drought and foot traffic. If an automatic lawn irrigation system is used, be sure it has been properly installed, is programmed to deliver the appropriate amount and rate of water, and has rain shut-off capability.
• Apply mulch around shrubs and flower beds to reduce evaporation, promote plant growth and control weeds.
• Add compost or organic matter to soil as necessary, to improve soil conditions and water retention.
• Collect rainfall for irrigation in a screened container (to prevent mosquito larvae growth).
• When washing a car, wet it quickly, then use a bucket of water to wash the car. Turn on the hose to final rinse (or let mother nature wash your car when it rains).
• Always use a broom to clean walkways, driveways, decks and porches, rather than hosing off these areas.